What is a Panel Session?

Panel sessions provide an opportunity for expert panel members to present their views on a specific topic and then to discuss these views among themselves and with the audience. Usually, a panel session starts with a brief introduction of the panel topic and the participants, followed by short presentations by the panelists giving their views. They are scheduled in standard conference spaces. The session must allow sufficient opportunity (about 30 minutes) for an interactive question and answer period involving both the panelists and the audience.

A typical panel will consist of four participants, including the moderator. Limiting a panel to four participants allows sufficient time for audience questions. Proposals with more than four panelists must convincingly show that all panelists will be able to speak, and the audience able to respond, within the session time.

Panel proposal review is NOT blind. Criteria used in reviewing the proposals include the likely level of interest of the topic, the presence of panel members with multiple perspectives on the topic, and the likelihood that the panel will leave sufficient time for audience participation.

If the proposal is accepted, all presenters listed in the panel description will be required to register for the conference and to participate in the session.

We are particularly interested in proposals that highlight the 50th SIGCSE Technical Symposium. Please check the option on the submission form if your proposal is related to the 50th.

How Should The Proposal Be Formatted?

The proposal is limited to a maximum of 2 pages and must adhere to ACM’s publication guidelines:

When providing author information, indicate which of the panelists
is the moderator by placing the word “Moderator” in parentheses
after her/his name.

Abstract: Should provide a brief summary of your panel

Summary: The first section should be titled Summary and should provide an expanded summary of the panel’s goals, intended audience, and relevance to the SIGCSE community written by the moderator.

Panel Structure: The section following the summary should explain the panel structure and plan for audience participation and provide sufficient time for audience interaction and questions.

Position Statements: The subsequent sections should contain the position statements of each panelist and a brief description of their expertise and background as it relates to the panel. Title each section by identifying the author.

References: Citing relevant work where appropriate is encouraged, but not required. If they are included, they should be placed in a separate section titled References and should follow the formatting guidelines.

If accepted, the panel description will be allocated
2 pages in the conference proceedings
and must adhere to the formatting guidelines specified above. To
facilitate the transition from proposal to camera-ready copy, it is
critical that authors adhere closely to the formatting specifications
and page limits.

Sample Proposal

How Do I Submit My Proposal?

Within the proposal, you must provide Category and Subject Descriptors, General Terms, and Keywords, just as paper authors must do. These requirements are described in more detail in the ACM publication guidelines.

Please limit the number of topic choices to no more than 5. This will help match your submission with reviewers.

Please do not wait until the last minute to submit your documents because that is when everyone else will be connecting to our server!

Make note of the proposal ID number and password assigned to your submission. You will receive an e-mail message confirmation. Spam filters sometimes trap these automatically generated messages so you may need to check your spam trap for the confirmation and later, acceptance or rejection notification.

After receiving confirmation, go to the submission site to review your submission for accuracy. Send e-mail to the chair(s) (see below) if there are any problems.

By SIGCSE policy, all contributors are required to register, attend and present a panel. See our full policy for more information.